Rail brake



c. w. SMITH 2,115,542

RAIL BRAKE Filed Jan. 28. .1957

April 26, 1938.

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Yig. I

INVENTOR CARL- W SMITH ATTORNEY C. W. SMITH April 26, 1938.

RAIL BRAKE Filed Jan. 28. 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR CARL w SMITH; BY

- ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 26, 1938 PATEN OFFICE v, RA LBRAKEQ 1 can W. smith, Glendale, cant, I assignor to "The p Westinghouse Air-Bi-ake Company, Wilmerding, Pa, a corporationlo'f Pennsylvania v applicati onfianuary 28,1937, Serial No. 122,753

1 '2 Claims.- (01. 188-165) This inventionrelates to rail brakes for vehicles, such as railway trains, and the principal object of the invention is to guard against and prevent injury to therailrbrake shoes, as'well as to the associated mounting and lifting mecha nism, caused by the failure of, the brake shoe to over-ride obstructions in the line of travel or the shoe while sliding alon'gthe rail in contact therewith.

The usual type of rail brake shoe hasabevel at the opposite endsthereof which inclines upwardly from the rails to assist in enabling the rail shoe 'to over-ride irregularities in the .level of the rails, as at the jointstbetween successive rail sections.

I have found, howevenfthatthe usualbevel-on the end of the rail shoes is ineffective to enable the shoe to over-ride a switch frog or point'which may project above the levelof thefrails of the main track. A particularinstance is-known of a rail shoe,having the usual'bevel at the ends thereof, which caught on'a projectingswitch frog or point in endeavoring tofollow the wheel trucks passing from themainftrack to a side track divergent from the main track at the switch and failed; to over-ride the projecting switch frog. Serious physical damage to the rail shoeitself, as well as to the mounting and lifting mechanism for the railshoe, resulted; The

suitably formed or .secured at each of the four corners of the rail brake shoe, which skid blocks are especially designed tofenable the rail shoe to ride up over obstructions in the" path of the shoe, such as a projecting switch frogor :point. I

My invention will be described in detail hereinafter in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, 1

Fig. 1 is a fragmentaryelevational view, showing a magnetic rail brake shoe assembly embodying my invention, i

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1 showing in further detail the rail brake shoe assembly,v

shoe, and l 'Fig. 3is a diagrammatic view of a railroad track and a switch frog, with rail brake shoes, not embodying my invention,so positioned as to illustrate the manner in which the rail brake shoes may strike the switch frog and be laterally diverted.

Fig. 4 is a fagmentary sectional view, taken on the line 44 of Fig. 3, further illustrating how the rail brake shoes may strike the switch frog or point and be laterally diverted,

invention,

Figs. Sand 7 are perspective Views of two detachably constituted skid blocks in their relative end of a rail brake positions as secured to one Fig. 8 is a. fragmentary sectional view corresponding to the view in Fig. 4 and showing in further detail the mannerin which the skid blocks comprising my invention are secured to the track shoes, as well as the manner in which the skid blocks are effective to permit the track shoe to ride over obstructions on the rail, such as the. raised edge of a switch frog or point.

As shown inFig. 1 of the drawings, the rail brake shoe assemblylmay comprise a rail brake shoe H suitably mounted on a wheel-truck having sideframes 12, only one of which is shown, and front and rear wheels I3 which roll along a track rail I9. l

The rail brake shoe Il may be of the magnetic type and may comprise a suitable magnetic core.

structure having two spaced, laminated side portions. I I to which are respectively secured two spaced oppositely disposedpole pieces of suitable magnetic material such as cast iron. A suitable'fillerror spacer l6 of non-magnetic material is interposed between the opposite pole pieces IE to prevent the entrance of dust or dirt particles between the pole pieces IF). A plurality of electromagnet coils l1, only one ofwhich is shown in Fig. 2, are mounted between the; side the pole pieces [5 extending longitudinally of the rails and adapted to slidingly contact the rail when the shoe is sufiiciently lowered from its normal position.

The pole piecesl5 are provided at the opposite. ends thereof with the usual bevel 18 for assisting inenabling therail shoes to slideover uneven rail .10 Fig.5 is a fragmentary elevational view, show- 7 ing one end of a rail brake shoe embodying my in order to enable a limited lateral rocking move;

ment of the rail shoe whereby the shoe may adjust itself to irregularities in the surface ofthe flange of the rail and maintain maximum area of contact therewith.

the track rail l9 and raised out of contact therefrom by suitable means, such as the two-lifting cylinders 23 shown, which are attached or mounted, as by mounting lugs 24, to transverse struts or members 25 which extend between the side frames l2 at opposite sides of the wheel truck. When fluid under pressure is supplied to each of the cylinders 23, as through a supply pipe 26, a piston (not shown) within the cylinders is shifted upwardly and causes a corresponding shifting of a stem or rod 21. One end of the rail shoe II is pivotally suspended by a pair of links or struts 28 from the uppermost end of the stem 21 of one lifting cylinder-23 and the opposite end of the shoeis similarly supported or suspended by a pair of links 28 from theuppermost end of the stem of the other cylinder. The links 28 are pivotally connected to brackets 2e attached to the rail shoe II. The pivotal connection of the links 28 to the stem 21 and to the brackets 29 is effected by means of bolts and nuts 3! and springs 32, which serve to prevent chattering and also to permit a flexible connection between the rail shoe and the lifting cylinders so that the shoe may adjust itself to irregularities in the surface of the rail' flange.

With fluid under pressure supplied through the pipe 26 to the cylinders 23, the stems 21 are held in a raised position so that the rail shoe is accordingly held in a raised position out of contact with the track rails. When fluid under pressure is released from the cylinders 23, the rail shoe falls, due to its own weight, into contact with the track rail. Current is supplied to the electromagnet coils I1 and energization thereof effected in any suitable manner to effect the magnetic attraction between the rail shoe and the track rail.

In Figs. 3 and 4 there is shown a switch frog 35 for switching vehicles from the main line track rails, designated as rails l9a, to side track rails, designated as rails l9b. If as is frequently the case, the main track rails settle or the wear on the flange of the main track rails I911 greatly exceeds the wear on the flanges of the side track rails I92), due to the higher proportion of traflic on the main track rails as compared to the traffic on the side track rails, the member l9c of the switch frog which is moved into contact with the main track rail I90. will eventually project above the top surface of the flange of the main track rails l9a.

In such case, with the switch'frog 35 in the position shown in Figs. 3 and 4 wherein it causes the traffic moving in the direction of the arrow, that is in the right-hand direction as viewed in Fig. 3, to switch from the main track rails lfla. to the side track rails [9b, 1 and with, the rail shoe lowered into sliding contact with the rails,

the lower edge of the pole pieces I5 on the rail shoe at one side of the wheel truck will strike the raised edge of the member I of the switch frog 35. As will be best seen in Fig. 4, the side edge of the pole pieces l5 of the usual rail brake shoe is perpendicular to the surface of the rail flange and thus the rail shoe will be diverted laterally along the edge of the member I90 of the switch frog in the direction of the main track rails [90. without being able to ride up and over 'jthe projecting edge of the member I90.

I have found that even. though the angle of inclination with respect to the track rails of the usual bevel l8 at the end of the rail shoes is a decreased from the usual angle and even though The rail shoe H is lowered into contact with theside edges of the usual bevel are rounded off, the rail brake shoe cannot ride up and over the projecting edge of the member I90, if the member I90 of the switch frog projects an appreciable distance above the top flange of the main track rail l9a.

According to my invention, I have accordingly provided specially devised skid blocks 38, shown in detail in Figs. 6 and 7 which may be applied to existing rail shoes of the usual type to convert them into shoes capable of riding over the raised edge "of a member of a switch frog and thereby to prevent severe damage to the rail brake equipment.

It will be understood that while my invention is illustrated in a form particularly applicable to the conversion of existing rail brake shoes, it may readily be applied in principle in the initial manu'facture of the rail shoes. As will be clearly apparent in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the skid blocks are relatively short in lengthcompared to the total length of the rail brake shoes, a skid block being attached to the pole pieces 15 of the rail brake shoe in the angle between the horizontal and vertical portions of the pole pieces H5, at the four corners of the rail brake shoe.

In order to provide proper seating for the skid blocks 38, the horizontal portions of the pole pieces l5 are provided with suitable recesses 4| (see Figs. 1 and 5) for receiving therein a corresponding projection 42 formed on one face of the skid block. Suitable screws 40 cooperating with threaded bores 43 in the skid block and in the pole pieces l5 serve to secure the skid blocks 38 to the pole pieces I5.

As will be clearly apparent in Figs. 7 and 8, the side surface 5|] of the skid block 38 extends laterally outward and upwardly from the railcontacting surface of the vertical portions of the pole pieces IS, the side surface curving inwardly toward the track rail at the opposite ends of the block 38.. While the side surfaces 50 are illustrated as substantially straight, they may be curved if desired. The ends of the skid block 38 are cut away or inclined to merge into and to conform to the angle of inclination of the bevel l8 at the end of the rail brake shoe.

The inner edge of the skid block 38, as well as the inner edge of the projection 42 on the skid block, is beveled in order to insure proper fitting of the skid block in the angle between the horizontal and vertical portions of the pole pieces l5, which might be prevented by irregularities of the fillet onthe pole pieces.

Referring to Fig.8, the manner in which the skid block 38 functions will be readily understood. The inwardly curved nose or end of the skid block 38 which merges into the bevel H3 at the end of the rail shoe II will strike the projecting or raised edge of the member I90 of the switch frog and, acting as a wedge, will tend to raise the rail brake shoe, against the magnetic force of attraction tending to hold the rail shoe in contact with the rail. Should the rail brake shoe tend to be diverted laterally by the raised edge of the member I90, the side surface of the member I90, acting as a wedge, will cause the rail shoe to be raised so as to slide over the projecting edge of the member I90. Accordingly, the rail brake shoes will follow the car wheels, indicated by broken lines in Fig. 3, in the direction of the side track rails lQb instead of being diverted along the main track rails 19a.

While I have illustrated and described only one embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that various modifications, omissions or additions may be made with respect to the embodiment of my invention shown, without departing from the spirit of my invention. It is accordingly not my intention to limit the scope of my invention except as it is necessitated by the scope of the prior art and otherwise than as defined in the appended claims.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A rail brake shoe for a vehicle, comprising a rail-contacting member, and means on said member having a forwardly inclined surface curved laterally outward from the end of the member and a surface extending longitudinally for a portion of the length of the shoe as well as laterally outward and upwardly from the rail-contact surface of the rail-contacting memher, into which the said curved surface merges.

2. A rail brake shoe for a vehicle, comprising a rail-contacting member which extends longitudinally of the rails and is of substantially rectangular shape, and means at each of the four corners of said member having a forwardly inclined surface curved laterally outward from the end of said member and a surface extending longitudinally for a portion of the length of the shoe as well as laterally outward and upwardly from the rail'contact surface of the rail-contacting member, into which the said curved surface merges.

3. A rail brake shoe for a vehicle, comprising a rail-contacting member adapted tobe disposed perpendicularly of the rail in alignment therewith, and means on opposite sides of the railcontacting member at one end thereof having a side surface which extends laterally outward and upwardly from the rail-contact surface of the rail-contacting member, which side surface curves laterally inward adjacent the end of the shoe toward the rail-contacting member, the

said surfaces on said means enabling the brake shoe to over-ride obstructions in the line of travel of the shoe when the shoe is in contact with the rail.

4. A rail brake shoe for a vehicle, comprising a rail-contacting member adapted to be disposed perpendicularly to the rail in alignment therewith, and two detachable members secured respectively on opposite sides of said rail-contacting member adjacent the end thereof, each of said detachable members having a side surface extending laterally outward and upwardly from the rail-contact surface of the rail-contacting member and curved laterally inward at the end of the shoe toward the rail-contacting member, the surfaces on said detachable members enabling the brake shoe to over-ride obstructions in the line of travel of the shoe when the shoe is in contact with the rail.

5. Protective means for preventing injury to vehicle rail brake shoes, which injury would otherwise occur due to the brake shoe striking obstructions in the path of the shoe when lowered to the rail and failing to over-ride such obstructions, comprising means at opposite sides of the brake shoe at one end thereof providing a surface which extends for a portion of the length of the shoe laterally outward and upwardly from the rail-contact surface of the brake shoe and which curves laterally inward adjacent the end of the brake shoe.

6. Protective means for preventing injury to vehicle rail brake shoes, which injury would otherwise occur due to failure of the brake shoe to over-ride obstructions in the path of the shoe when lowered to the rail, comprising means at opposite sides of the brake shoe and at each end thereof providing a surface which extends laterally outward and upwardly from the railcontact surface of the brake shoe and which curves laterally inward adjacent the corresponding end of the shoe.

7. A rail brake shoe for a vehicle, comprising a rail-contacting member adapted to be disposed perpendicularly to and in alignment with the track rail and having surfaces at opposite ends thereof inclined forwardly relative to the surface of the rail, and means on one side of the rail-contacting member adjacent one end of the shoe providing a surface which extends for a portion of the length of the shoe laterally outward and upwardly from the rail-contact surface of the rail-contacting member and which curves laterally inward at the end thereof adjacent the end of the brake shoe toward the railcontacting member, the curved portion of said surface merging into the forwardly inclined surface at the end of the rail-contacting member.

CARL W. SMITH. 

